The South African Reserve Bank’s Market Practitioners Group (MPG) Legal Workstream will host its fourth Legal Industry Webinar on the transition from JIBAR to ZARONIA on 20 August 2026. The webinar will bring together representatives from the South African Reserve Bank, National Treasury, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), the Prudential Authority (PA) and leading legal practitioners to discuss key developments in the benchmark transition process. 

Topics will include JIBAR and ZARONIA transaction data, proposed amendments to the Financial Sector Regulation Act, draft SARB notices addressing tough legacy contracts, regulatory supervisory programmes and practical market perspectives across a range of asset classes.  

(link to register here) 

The Market Practitioners Group (MPG) has published two new papers setting out recommended approaches for the transition from JIBAR to ZARONIA. No New JIBAR outlines a proposed market‑wide milestone from 1 May 2026, aimed at preventing the creation of new JIBAR-linked exposures ahead of cessation. Transition Approach Recommendations provides guidance on the active, passive and legislative pathways available for transitioning legacy JIBAR exposures across key product markets, helping firms plan and manage the transition.

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and the Prudential Authority (PA) have released Joint Communication 1 of 2026, expanding the supervisory expectations supporting South Africa’s transition from JIBAR to ZARONIA. The communication builds on earlier guidance and reinforces the ‘No new JIBAR’ initiative, under which financial institutions should cease issuing new JIBAR‑referencing products from 1 May 2026, except in clearly defined exceptional cases. It outlines minimum expectations on limiting new JIBAR exposure, using ZARONIA for new products, applying strong governance, and ensuring any permitted exceptions do not create additional JIBAR risk.